Kerala on Friday reported another massive surge of Covid-19 infections because the state recorded 32,801 new cases taking the test positivity rate to 19.22 per cent. this can be the second time since May 20, the height of the second wave, that the state recorded over 30,000 fresh cases in 24 hours. Given the surge within the cases, the authorities decided to bring back Sunday lockdown, which was done away with within the last fortnight thanks to the Fourth of July and Onam celebrations.
Kerala’s Covid situation has deteriorated with the state seeing an Onam spike. State health minister Veena George put the blame on home isolation and recently said that a majority of the people are becoming infected from their relations as infected people don’t seem to be following containment rules properly in home isolation.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan too dismissed the constant attack on Kerala’s Covid management as ‘unwanted’ and said that these are deliberate attempts to undermine people’s fight against the pandemic. “These moves were to trigger public sentiments against the govt. and thus create a situation within which the fight against the infection was viewed lightly by the people,” the chief minister wrote within the latest edition of the party’s mouthpiece.
“In Kerala, not one person had died thanks to the dearth of oxygen. nobody has been denied access to health services or anyone faced a situation of not getting a single bed during emergencies,” the CM wrote adding that people who are criticising Kerala’s model don’t seem to be aware that the second wave started a touch late within the state.
The Union Secretary of State for the Home Department chaired a gathering on Thursday with the authorities officials of Kerala and Maharashtra as these are the 2 states with an unusual graph of Covid at the moment. The Centre also suggested placing an evening curfew in areas of high positivity.
Cases of reinfections are found to be higher in Kerala than in other states, which contributed to the continuing surge that started within the last week of July. Another peak just after Onam was predicted and also the regime was alerted accordingly.
